If the United States is going to remain economically competitive and a leader in new technologies, the capacity of its high school and college graduates to do math must improve. Two decades of international comparisons show that the longer American students are in school, the further they fall behind their counterparts in other developed nations. [...]

Good math teachers are hard to find. Some school districts have resorted to recruiting math teachers from overseas, while others have offered perks such as signing bonuses, housing assistance and student loan forgiveness. In attempting to address the shortage of math teachers, much of the focus has been on recruiting – providing financial incentives, alternative [...]

The familiar high school math sequence – Algebra I, geometry, Algebra II, trigonometry – is so ingrained that it’s easy to forget there are other ways to learn mathematics. In fact, if we look at countries that outperform the United States on international math assessments like the Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study (TIMSS), [...]

What are the pros and cons of using calculators in the classroom? Are they useful tools for teaching mathematics? Can they keep students from figuring out how to crunch numbers on their own? We’ve got all the arguements.

For decades, business leaders, educators and politicians have argued that U.S. students should study more advanced levels of math. Concerned about competition from countries like China and India, these advocates raise alarm about the shortage of Americans trained for jobs in engineering and other high-tech fields, arguing that in a knowledge economy even entry-level manufacturing jobs require greater levels of math competency. But is there merit to such claims?

Three experts talk about what makes a good math teacher.